The Symptoms and Causes of Social Anxiety Disorder

Based in Kansas City, Kansas, Christie Mensch practices outpatient psychiatry at the Wyandot Center. Christie Mensch’s range of experience includes treating patients with conditions such as attention-deficit disorder, schizophrenia, and anxiety. 

One of the most common mental health conditions in the United States, social anxiety disorder often carries with it an avoidance of public places and social events due to a fear of being judged. Those with the disorder may experience worry surrounding events that others take in stride, and this can begin days and weeks before the event. With children, the condition may manifest as a tendency to cling to parents, a refusal to talk in public, and tantrums prior to the occasion. 

Physical symptoms associated with social anxiety include accelerated heartbeat, stomach pain, muscle tension, and hyperventilation. The fear of others noticing these signs of anxiety can make the symptoms even worse. In addressing the condition, therapy approaches often seek to provide exposure to situations that generate discomfort. This helps patients to gain confidence in dealing with situations that would otherwise cause anxiety.

The Traditions of Midwestern Cooking

An experienced psychiatrist, Christie Mensch assists Kansas City patients in an outpatient setting with disorders such as schizophrenia and depression. Outside of her professional life, Christie Mensch has a passion for cooking and particularly enjoys creating traditional Midwest recipes that incorporate local ingredients. 

The roots of Midwestern cuisine lie in German and Scandinavian traditions, with meat and potatoes a mainstay in traditional dishes such as soups and casseroles. Many of these recipes were perfected through communal dinners of the church and potluck variety. 

With agriculture at the forefront of the traditional Midwestern lifestyle, vegetables are also an essential component to many dishes. These range from simple side dishes, such as corn on the cob, to soup that incorporates wild rice. Other dishes combine fruits and meats in various ways. One classic pairing is pan-seared sausages with Granny Smith apples. This involves cooking bratwurst in a skillet with olive oil and adding fennel, thinly sliced apples, and vinegar to create a contrasting combination of flavors. 

Traditional Midwestern etiquette maintains that, at all costs, room must be saved for dessert. Classic examples include mouthwatering standards such as apple pie and strawberry rhubarb cobbler.

Key Ways in Which Pets Help with Depression

 

Dr. Christie Mensch is an experienced psychiatrist who treats patients through the Wyandot Center in Kansas City. In this position, Dr. Christie Mensch helps patients with anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and depression. Many people have had success combatting depression and its symptoms through pet therapy.

Pets have the power to improve mental health in a number of ways. First, pets provide unconditional acceptance, and they teach us that we are worthy of loving. In addition, pets provide a calming, consistent presence.

In many situations, pets directly alter human behavior. For example, imagine coming home annoyed, angry, or upset. When a pet shows excitement and wants immediate attention, we let go of those negative emotions.

A number of researchers have documented the healing power of touch. Pets provide a constant source of touch, and petting a cat or dog has been shown to lower blood pressure while also increasing dopamine and serotonin levels.

Finally, pets provide individuals with a sense of responsibility, which is key to promoting mental health. By having ownership of a task, such as taking care of a dog, you get a boost to your self-esteem.

Hypomania and Mania in the Bipolar Client

As a psychiatrist at the Wyandot Center in Kansas City, Kansas, Dr. Christie Mensch diagnoses and treats patients with a broad range of mental health concerns. Dr. Christie Mensch draws on experience in the treatment of many mood disorders, including Bipolar I and II.

From a clinical standpoint, the distinction between Bipolar I and Bipolar II disorders lies in the presentation of manic symptoms and in the consistency of mood symptoms. Bipolar I disorder, the more severe of the two conditions, features episodes of true mania. A manic episode presents as periods of heightened energy and racing thoughts, which can arise so quickly that the individual cannot keep up. A patient in a manic period may feel a decreased need for sleep, may talk too much or too fast, and can make destructively impulsive decisions.

The heightened mood of hypomania, as often seen in Bipolar II patients, is significantly less intense and may not appear abnormal to external observers. Someone with hypomania may also sleep less, talk more, and act in a slightly more impulsive manner, but their actions are typically not destructive or self-destructive. A person experiencing hypomania may feel energetic and motivated and, as a result, may not recognize the hypomanic period as a symptom of illness.

If this occurs, hypomania may not make its way into the patient’s file. This can lead to the misdiagnosis of Bipolar II disorder as simple depression, as the patient’s low moods are of far greater concern to them than the times when they feel good. For this reason, it is important for both clinicians and patients to closely examine mood differences and compare them to both individual baselines and diagnostic criteria.

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